Friday, June 09, 2006

Avoid Stimulant Drugs

Avoid Stimulant Drugs

Stimulant drugs increase the risk of stroke and sudden death. They must be used with caution or avoided. The drugs of concern are epinephrine, norepinephrine, ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, phenylpropanolamine, methyphenidate, ampthetamine, and methamphetamine

Cocaine decreases brain perfusion and increases the risk of ischemic stroke. The intake of caffeine will increase the effect of sympathetic amines that are found in weight loss products, cold remedies, cough syrups, energy drinks, and prescription drugs. Sympathetic amines increase blood pressure, heart rate and decrease brain perfusion. Haller and Benowitz warned that: “Dietary supplements that contain ephedra alkaloids (also known as ma huang) and guarana-derived caffeine are widely consumed in the United States for purposes of weight reduction and energy enhancement. A number of reports of adverse reactions to dietary supplements that contain ephedra alkaloids, some of which resulted in permanent injury or death, have appeared in the medical literature. In response to growing concern about the safety of ephedra alkaloids in dietary supplements, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested an independent review of reports of adverse events related to the use of ephedra alkaloids to assess causation and determine the level of risk these products pose to consumers.”

In the US, a FDA advisory committee heard testimony indicating that 2.5 million children take stimulants for ADHD, including nearly 10 percent of all 10-year-old boys in the United States. The use of these agents is much less prevalent in European countries, where the diagnosis of ADHD is relatively uncommon. The popularity of the diagnosis, Adult ADHD is relatively recent leading to at least 1.5 million adults who take stimulants on a daily basis, with 10 percent of users older than 50 years of age. Drug-related events reviewed by the committee included 25 cases of sudden death in children or adults that included myocardial infarction, stroke, and serious heart arrhythmias. The committee concluded: “We rejected the notion that the administration of potent sympathomimetic agents to millions of Americans is appropriate. We sought to emphasize more selective and restricted use, while increasing awareness of potential hazards. We argued that the FDA should act soon and decisively. “

May 26 2006 Canada's health ministry warned individuals with hypertension, heart disease or abnormalities, arthrosclerosis or hyperthyroidism not to take drugs used to manage attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). All ADHD drugs stimulate the heart and blood vessels... in some patients this stimulation may result in cardiac arrests, strokes or death.

About Me

Stephen is a physician, author, musician and composer. He has written 19 books in the Alpha Education Series that provide guides to managing the most common diseases. Revision of many books are available as 2017 editions. The books are ordered at Alpha Online in either print versions or as eBook downloads.

Alpha Education Books

These books developed gradually from Dr. Gislason's lecture notes and other presentations. In
1991 Dr. Gislason wrote "Nutritional Therapy, his survey of the theory and concepts
behind his method of diet revision. In 1993 Nutritional Therapy Vol. 2 was published
as a large format book that emphasized the practical instructions required to successfully
solve health problems with diet revision. In 1998, the Core Program was transformed
into the Alpha Nutrition Program. A series of texts acted as interfaces to the program,
describing specific health concerns and were first published under the banner of
Alpha Nutrition Health Education, abbreviated to Alpha Education in 2008. Dr. Gislason
has continued to revise and expand these books into informative guides to common
medical problems.

Persona Books

Dr. Gislason had an early start in the study of philosophy and neuroscience.
At age 16, he decided his main life task would be to pursue understanding the human
mind. In the intervening years, he studied neuroanatomy, neurotransmitters,
electronics, computer science, neuropsychology and at the same time he studied
Buddhist philosophy and practiced a variety of meditation techniques.

Music

He is the chief performer, arranger and studio engineer at Persona Digital Studio. He started the 2500 Band in 1996 . The Persona Classical Ensemble was formed in 2007 to arrange and record pieces by JS Bach, Amadeus Mozart and other composers in the classical repertoire. His book Sound of Music was published in Jan. 2011 with a 2017 revision now available.

He has written that singing, dancing and playing music are the best expressions of humans. His review of popular music brings him pleasure and inspiration to develop new compositions. He is most attracted to beautiful ballads, modern jazz and lyrical melodies. He studied piano for many years, beginning a at age 5. As a child, he was immersed in classical music. In high school he started to play the trumpet in bands and continues to play trumpet and flugelhorn parts on the keyboard. In the early 70s, he learned electronics, began building synthesizers and experimented with psychoacoustics. His study of neuroscience integrated nicely with his study of electronic sound processing and sound processing in the brain.